diehardfandomcom-20200223-history
Heckler
The Heckler and Koch MP5A3 (MP5 meaning Machine Pistol Model 5) is a 9mm submachine gun of German design, developed in the 1960s by a group of engineers from the West German arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH. The gun weighs only around five pounds and was chosen because of its sophisticated appearance. Die Hard Hans Gruber's men used these weapons in taking over the Nakatomi Plaza. John McClane frequently acquires these guns from any member of the group he kills, first from Tony, then from Marco and lastly, from Uli. McClane only manages to kill two of the terrorists with their MP5s; Fritz and Franco during the shootout on the 33rd floor. The guns used in the film were not even actual MP5s; they were actually similar to HK94 semi-automatic carbine rifles whose barrels were chopped down and converted to full auto to resemble MP5A3s. Die Hard 2 Colonel Stuart and Major Grant's men all use MP5s with "jungle style" magazines, (two magazines joined together with tape). Two versions of these guns are seen: magazines with red tape or blue tape. A massive firefight breaks out between Major Grant and Colonel Stuart's men, during which John McClane picks up a discarded MP5 with blue tape. McClane fires the weapon at a couple of men, but fail to kill his targets, who in turn swap their magazines to 'live' ammunition and blow up McClane's snowmobile. McClane checks the load, discovers that the gun was carrying blanks, and deduces that the ones carrying live ammunition must be the ones with red tape. McClane fired the gun at Carmine Lorenzo to prove that the firefight was staged, convincing him Stuart and Grant were in cahoots, but nearly getting shot in the process. McClane proves his point, and Lorenzo gets his men on it. In this film, there were three variants of MP5s used, including the MP5A3, the MP5A5, and the MP5K, a scaled down version with a fore-grip. Die Hard with a Vengeance During the cargo ship sequence, John McClane takes an MP5K off a dead terrorist and gives it to Zeus Carver before sending him off to find Simon Gruber. When Zeus does, he corners Simon and threatens to kill him if he doesn't give out the code to disarm a bomb. Simon refuses and Zeus pulls the trigger, only to find that weapon was in a 'safe' mode. Simon casually takes the gun from him, explaining that the safety was on. Live Free or Die Hard Unlike the previous films, the terrorists in this one do not use the MP5 as a main weapon, instead opting for more futuristic looking weapons. However, they do make a brief appearance. The FBI is seen holding MP5A2s (The MP5A3 with a fixed rubber butt-stock), and MP5A3s (Same gun but with collapsing stock). A Good Day to Die Hard Irina uses an MP5K-PDW, which is an MP5K with a threaded barrel. She attaches a silencer to her MP5 and also has a scope on it. Trivia *The MP5A3 and MP5A5 both feature a gun strap, factory sights, a detachable 30-round curved box magazine, a selector switch and a folding stock. *The MP5Ks do not have folding stocks and feature a fore-grip under the shortened barrel, and the MP5A2 is identical to the MP5A3, only with a fixed butt-stock. *Although the gun was European and was only used to contrast the weapons between the terrorists and the LAPD, law enforcement around the world soon began using it. *Besides the Beretta 92 pistol, the H&K MP5 is the only weapon seen in all five Die Hard films. *Each film features a different MP5 variant, meaning that there is no one type of the MP5 that is seen twice. Die Hard ''featured the cut-down HK94 carbine, ''Die Hard 2: Die Harder featured the MP5K, MP5A3, and MP5A5, Die Hard with a Vengeance ''featured the MP5K, ''Live Free or Die Hard ''featured the MP5A2, and A Good Day to Die Hard featured a MP5-PDW with silencer. Appearances *Die Hard'' *''Die Hard 2: Die Harder'' *''Die Hard with a Vengeance'' *''Live Free or Die Hard (very briefly) *A Good Day to Die Hard'' Category:Weapons of Die Hard Movies Category:Weapons used by John McClane Category:Submachine Guns